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L A N D I N G S
NEWS & VIEWS FROM MAINE'S LOBSTERING COMMUNITY
In January 2013, the MLCA launched Landings, a monthly newspaper which balances
its content amongst science, history, resource sustainability, economic development,
and human interest stories. Through Landings, MLCA educates the public and lobster
industry stakeholders about the unique characteristics of Maine’s lobstering traditions,
its history and heritage, ongoing research to maintain the sustainability of the resource,
and its non-harmful and non-wasteful commercial fishing practices.
Distributing more than 6,500 copies of this 24+page publication free via mail each
month to all of Maine’s commercial lobstermen, state government agency staff, elected
state officials, Congressional delegation, subscribers, marine businesses; and to the
public at various locations around the state including ferry terminals, marine supply
stores and annual educational forums.
Guest Column: Owning up to our part in plight of right whales
Published in the Portland Press Herald, reprinted with permission It’s time we all own up to the plight of the North Atlantic right...
Nov 4, 20214 min read
Right Whales Congregating Where Wind Turbines Will Be
North Atlantic right whales are congregating and finding food in a new area: southern New England waters where offshore wind energy...
Sep 15, 20212 min read
NMFS calls for deeper cuts over ten years to protect whales
Right whales will continue to decline unless other actions taken 2021 Brings beauty but also unwelcome news to Maine lobstermen. Photo M....
Jan 29, 202110 min read
Massachusetts Proposes New Regulations to Protect Right Whales in State Waters
In January 2020, Max Strahan, a self-described whale activist, filed suit in the U.S. District Court in Massachusetts against the state....
Nov 25, 20203 min read
NOAA Estimates Only 366 Right Whales Alive
Every year, NOAA Fisheries estimates the endangered North Atlantic right whale population abundance and shares that estimate at the North...
Nov 10, 20202 min read
Lobstering Laws: Will the Whales Win?
First published in National Fisherman, April 21. Reprinted with permission. Jerry Fraser is the former editor of National Fishermen. It...
May 7, 20204 min read
In the News: New Canadian regulations announced to protect right whales
Canada announced new regulations to protect the endangered North Atlantic right whale. From April to November, the federal Department of...
Apr 22, 20202 min read
Listening for whales
Two passive acoustic data collection efforts are underway in the Gulf of Maine to gather information on North Atlantic right whales. One...
Mar 14, 20203 min read
Gillnet Closures to Protect Right Whales Announced
First published in Landings, January, 2020 On December 16, NOAA announced the closure of the Nantucket Lightship and Closed Area I...
Jan 23, 20201 min read
New analysis shows NOAA must look beyond the lobster fishery to protect right whales
In late August, the Maine Lobstermen’s Association (MLA) sent a pointed letter to NOAA Chief Chris Oliver officially withdrawing support...
Sep 13, 20192 min read
Five Dead Right Whales in Canada
NOAA photo. As of June 28, six right whales have been reported dead in the Gulf of St. Lawrence. On June 26, Transport Canada announced...
Jul 24, 20191 min read
The Fate of Right Whales, and Lobstermen, Subject to Fishermen's Forum Seminar
The plight of lobstermen was foremost in the minds of many at the Maine Fishermen’s Forum seminar on the status of North American right...
Apr 12, 20195 min read
Guest Column: Canadian Lobster Fishery Works to Protect Right Whales
One of the most critical issues facing the lobster sector in North America is how we work together to manage fishery interactions with the North Atlantic right whales (NARW).It goes without saying that the lobster sector in Canada and the United States must do everything possible to protect the North Atlantic right whale. The impact that the 18 reported deaths in 2017 has had on the entire NARW population cannot be overstated. However, some of the reporting to date has contai
Jul 18, 20183 min read
It's Not That Easy Keeping Track Of Right Whales
With the sharp focus this summer on North Atlantic right whales, a logical question to ask is: why is it so hard to figure out where the whales are? Wouldn’t it make sense to tag them, as we do cod and sharks, so that scientists and fishermen can know where they are and, in the latter case, avoid them? Russell Andrews of the University of Alaska and the Alaska SeaLife Center has tried to do just that. He and his colleagues attempted to tag right whales with a satellite tag to
Jun 6, 20184 min read
Status of North American Right Whales Topic of Fishermen's Forum Session
The audience packed the room at the Fishermen’s Forum for a presentation on the status of North Atlantic right whales. Mark Baumgartner...
Apr 7, 20182 min read
NOAA Fisheries Recommends Actions to Help Right Whales
Designating a dedicated Right Whale Recovery Coordinator in the Greater Atlantic Region to focus efforts on recovery. Diane Borggaard, a...
Nov 14, 20173 min read
high mortality among right whales in Gulf of st. lawrence
First published in, Landings, August 2017 This has been a deadly summer for the endangered North Atlantic right whale. In June and July, eight right whales were found dead in the area around the Magdalen Islands in the Gulf of St. Lawrence. Preliminary findings from necropsies performed on the whales by the Canadian Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO) indicate that three of the whales showed evidence of ship strikes. Another whale had become entangled in snow crab gear
Aug 9, 20172 min read
So you want to know: Where have the Bay of Fundy whales gone?
First published in Landings, July, 2013. Each season Maine lobstermen are setting new records for the pounds of lobster landed in the state. Last year a total of 126 million pounds were landed, an all-time record. These large volumes have caused people to think about new ways to deal with the abundant supply and limited demand through better marketing. But what effects does a high population have on the lobsters themselves? That question led Noah Oppenheim and Rick Wahle to t
Nov 21, 20133 min read
Research shows troubling signs in entangled whales
First published in Landings, July, 2013. In a report released in May, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute (WHOI) scientists provided a new assessment of how fishing lines change a whale’s diving and swimming behavior. They found that an entangled whale suffers from the effects of added buoyancy and drag, expending critical energy as it swims with that gear. A two-year old female right whale, called Eg 3911, was first sighted entangled by an aerial survey team on December 25, 2
Jul 23, 20132 min read
Maine Lobstermen's Community Alliance: Finding ways to keep whales out of vertical lines
One of the major regulatory issues facing lobstermen in New England is the imminent promulgation by the National Fisheries Service of new rules regarding entanglement of endangered whales in lobster gear. Despite the now-mandatory use of sinking groundlines, North Atlantic right whales and other species are still becoming ensnared in vertical lines, incurring serious injuries and even dying from these encounters. Scientists have identified fishing without vertical lines as th
Jun 26, 20132 min read
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